Making the most of your time in the open air of St. Petersburg

Victory Park

Address: 25 Kuznetsovskaya St. (Кузнецовская ул.)

Telephone number: + 7 (812) 388-34-10

Within the Victory Park’s grounds, you can find the tennis club “Gloria,” where you can rent either an outdoor or indoor court and learn how to play with a professional trainer. The sale of summer season passes and enrollments in children’s tennis camps have begun. The sessions last two weeks, and include three hours of training every day, a visit to a swimming pool twice a week, as well as meals (both lunch and snacks). Court rentals can be arranged over the phone.

In the center of the park lies a boathouse, where boats can be rented and taken about the ponds. Directly behind the boathouse there is an amusement park.

Prices: court rental – 650 to 1,500 rubles per hour; children’s tennis camp – 2,800 rubles per session; boat rental – 300 rubles per hour.

Catherinehof Park

Address: 12 Liflandskaya St. (Лифляндская ул.)

Telephone number: +7 (812) 786-99-55

The only state run equestrian sports club operates in the Catherinehof Park, which also conducts therapeutic horseback riding classes. Here you can learn how to hold yourself in a saddle, or sign up for a one-time ride under the supervision of an instructor. In addition to this, the club also breeds thoroughbreds, which can be purchased there.

During the summer season, one of the most affordable tennis clubs in the city also operates here. Five outdoor clay courts are open from May through mid-September.

Prices: one-hour horse ride around the park- 1,000 rubles; tennis court rental – 500-600 rubles per hour.

TsPKiO (Kirov Central Park, Yelagin Island)

Address: 4 Yelagin Island (Елагин остров)

Telephone number: +7 (812) 430-09-21

At 1:00 pm on Saturdays and Sundays, concerts are held by the military brass band on the square in front of the Stable Building in Kirov Park. Usually, the repertoire consists of tunes from years past, which draw couples out onto the square to dance. Outdoor exercises are held on the park grounds year round as well. Morning and evening group classes are offered. The schedule can be obtained by phone. Boats and catamarans are available for rental at Kirov Central Park during the summer.

Prices: 8 group exercise sessions package – 100 rubles.

Project “While You Were Asleep”

Already in its second consecutive season, the project “While You Were Sleeping” provides spaces free of charge to residents and tourists for yoga lessons with professional instructors. Classes are held outdoors. Participants have the opportunity to not only harmonize body and mind, but also make new acquaintances and meet like-minded people. To find out about the schedule, call + 7 (921) 551-14-54.

Classes are held at several parks: the Tauride Garden (Таври́ческий сад), and the Udelny and Semenov Parks. In the Catherinehof Park, in the Malinovka Park, Park of the 300th Anniversary of St. Petersburg, and the Central Park of Culture and Recreation on Yelagin Island.

Prices: free of charge

Open-air Movie Theaters

Roof Cinema

Address: 7 Griboedov Channel, Club Mod courtyard

Roof Cinema – it is a movie theater located on the roof-terrace of Club MOD. Every summer since 2011, a movie theater where good and time-tested films are screened, opens. Additionally, film screenings will be there will also be meetings with filmmakers. Cozy blankets, the movie theater’s own pizza place, and dances with free admission round off the evening after screenings. Films are screened both in English and in Russian.

Price: 300 rubles

Night Watch

Address: 50 Ligovskii Prospect

The “Night Watch” project organizes open-air evening screenings. Every Thursday, cinema lovers gather in the street bar “Dyuny” stylized to look like a beach with sand and hammocks. Films are screened in English and in Russian. Lectures on world cinema are held as part of the project.

Price: free of charge

Bicycle, Rollerblade, Moped, Motor Scooter, and Push Scooter Rental

Alfa Prokat

Address: 102 Moika embankment; 27/2 Marshall Tukhachevsky St., Karelia Hotel

Phone number: 981-91-00

The rental company has its offices in two Petersburg hotels – in the hostel “Graffiti” and in the 16-story hotel complex “Karelia.” People of all sizes can rent bicycles here. Mostly foreigners and tourists from other Russian cities who want to go on a bike ride around the city frequent this establishment. Customers who are not staying at the hostel or hotel have to leave a deposit. A contract also has to be signed, according to which if a bike is stolen, you have to pay 70% of its value. Alpha Prokat offers Czech made Author Trophy brand bicycles, with frames of different sizes. Each office has 20 rental bicycles.

Prices: 1 hour – 200 rubles; day rental- 500 rubles; 24 hour rental – 700 rubles; 2 day rental – 1000 rubles.

Deposit: 2,000 rubles, ID required.

Hours of operation: 10:00 am to 10:00 pm

Velostantsiya

Address: 23 Millionnaya St.; 2 Uchebnyi per.

Phone number: +7 (812) 919-68-52

This bike rental has two offices: one in Ozerki, and another downtown on Rubinstein St., the latter of which opened this year. “Velostantsiya” offers more than 30 bicycles. The maximum rental time is 24 hours, but this can be extended whereby the customer receives a considerable discount. Every season, the inventory is updated. Forward and Stels mountain bikes with both women’s and men’s frames are available here. If needed, child seats and bike locks are complimentary. The “Velostantsiya” has rollerblade rentals as well. If you wish, you can get a special bag for your skates free of charge. You can bike or skate on the bike paths in the nearby Murinsky Park.

Prices:

1) Bicycles: 1 hour – 100 rubles; day rental – 400 rubles; 24 hour rental – 500 rubles.

2) Roller skates: 1 hour – ¬100 rubles; day rental – 400 rubles; weekend rental – 1,800 rubles; protective equipment/helmet ¬– 100 rubles for entire skating session.

Deposit: 2,000 rubles with an ID or 6,000 rubles without.

Hours of operation: 11:00 am to 10:00 pm

Jet Set

Address: Krestovsky Island (Крестовский остров) metro stop, Maritime Victory Park (Приморский парк победы)

Telephone number: +7 (812) 498-70-78

Jet Set rents roller skates, bicycles, Segways, and other sports equipment, and is located within the Maritime Victory Park on Krestovsky Island. Bicycles and roller skates from the leading brands Merida, Scottusa, Univega, Fuji, Schwinn, and Rollerblade are available in all color and according to any preference. Prices are based on equipment type, and there are separate rates for children and adults.

Prices: roller skates – 250-300 rubles per hour; bicycles – 400 rubles per hour; push scooters – 150 rubles per hour; Segways – 300 rubles per 15 minutes.

Deposit: relative to the value of equipment rented – ranging from 1,500 rubles with ID to higher.

Hours of Operation: Monday – Friday from 12:00 pm to 11:00 pm; Saturdays from 11:00 am to 12:00 am; Sundays from 11:00 am to 11:00 pm.

Velotour

Address: 20 Galernaya St.

Telephone number: +7 (911) 922-50-30

Velotour does business by request only, but rental bicycles are available at any time and only a phone call away. Leisure bikes with baskets are also offered. Velotour also organizes bicycle tours on its own routes: “Night Lights of St. Petersburg,” “Romantic Places,” “By the Rivers and Canals,” Urban Bike Tour” and an excursion to Petrogradka. The price to take part in a tour ranges from 600 to 2,000 rubles depending on the number of participants.

Prices: 1 hour – 400 rubles; day rental – 700 rubles; 24 hours – 800 rubles; 2 days – 1,200 rubles.

Deposit: 2,000 rubles with ID or 3,000 without

Hours of operation: by request only

Akimoto

Address: 1 Irinovsky Prospekt (Ириновский проспект); 4 8th Sovetskaya St. (8-я Советская улица)

Telephone number: +7 (911) 978-09-11/ +7 (911) 727-35-22

Akimoto is a discount center that offers rental motor scooters. All customers must strictly be 18 years or older. A license for operating scooters (class M category vehicles) or automobile driver’s license is desirable. However, it’s important for the rental’s owner for the customer to have the skills necessary for operating vehicles, which can be rented even without a license. To rent a vehicle without a license is at the customer’s discretion and own risk.

Prices: 24 hours – 2,300 rubles; weekend rental (from Friday evening to Sunday evening) – 4000 rubles).

Deposit: 3,500 rubles along with ID

Hours of Operation: from 10:00 am to 10:00 pm 7 days a week.

Kiting, windsurfing, wakeboarding

“Take Off” Surfing Club

Address: 41st kilometer of Primorskoe highway (Приморское шоссе),“Dyuny” holiday resort beach.

Telephone number: +7 (904) 514-49-13

“Take Off” surfing club provides rental services and storage for boards and equipment, and if you don’t know how to windsurf yet or would like to improve your skills, there are instructors at your disposal. Surfing with rented boards is only permitted within a designated area by the station. Windsurfing equipment is complimentary with lessons.

Prices:

• Kite surfing lessons: 1 hour – 2,500 rubles; 5 hours – 11,000 rubles; 10 hours – 18,000 rubles. Rental rates: kite – 1.000 rubles per hour; surfboard – 1,500 rubles per hour; – 1,400 rubles per day

• Windsurfing: lessons – 2,500 rubles per hour. Rental rates: 1 hour – from 500 rubles; 3 hours – 1,400 rubles; 10 hours – 4,000 rubles.

Hours of operation: dependent on weather conditions

KiteLand

Address: no stationary address, kitesurfing school operates on the Gulf of Finland, Lake Ladoga (Ладожское оoзеро), the Sestroretsky spill (озеро Разлив), and Bolshaya Izhora (Большой Ижоре).

Telephone number: +7 (911) 942–44–62

Kitesurfing only following instruction, during the course of which you will learn how to fly a kite, how to handle a quad-line kite, proper kite surfing stance, or how to surf against the wind at an angle. Both classes for beginners and those who want to further their training are offered. You must first call and arrange a time and place for training. KiteLand also has a station in Egypt in the Al Mahasaya region.

Prices: kitesurfing instruction: 2,000 rubles per hour for individual lesson; 1,200 rubles per hour for group lessons; rental equipment – 1,000 rubles

Hours of Operation: dependent on the weather, typically from 10:00 am to 10:00 pm, excluding weekends.

Club “Fresh Wind”

Address: 41st kilometer of Primorskoe Highway, wakeboarding park at the Krasavitsa Lake (Oзеро Красавица) (7 km from Zelenogorska (Зеленогорска)).

Telephone number: +7 (921) 900-58-05

At this windsurfing and kitesurfing school, you can learn how to handle a sailboard. The school, which has been open since 2000, operates in St. Petersburg every summer, and moves to warmer countries for the winter. For example, the Fresh Wind carried out a “kite safari” in Egypt this past winter, and the New Year’s holiday was spent in Kenya.

In order to kitesurf or windsurf, you must either first go through instruction or have obtained a certification based on international standards. Wakeboarding can be done without training: only brief instruction is necessary. A wakeboard, helmet, and life jacket are all included when renting equipment.

Prices:

• Windsurfing:

- Lessons: course in windsurfing– 8,000 rubles; 1 hour lesson – 1,200 rubles; 1 hour lesson with personal equipment – 1,000 rubles.

- Windsurfing rental: 1 hour on weekdays – 600 rubles; 1 hour during weekends – 700 rubles; 10 hour pass – 5,000 rubles; 20 hour pass – 8,000 rubles.

• Kitesurfing:

- Lessons: 1 hour lesson – 2,000 rubles, average duration of the course – 6 hours

• Wakeboarding (without training):

- 1 set (10 minutes) – 400 rubles; pass for 10 sets – 3,500 rubles; pass for 20 sets – 6,000 rubles; wetsuit – 100 rubles.

Hours of operation: dependent upon weather condition, typically from 12:00 pm to 10:00 pm, excluding weekends.

“Windsurf-Point” surfing station

Address: 75 Peterhoff highway, bldg 2.

Telephone number: +7 921-307-76-25/ +7 921-992-17-71

Under the initiative of a group of windsurfers, the station was founded jointly with the yacht club “Baltiets” in 2008. If travelling by car, there is a toll to enter the club grounds, which provides monitored parking. Storage for equipment is provided at the station. There is a warm place to change, as well as a complimentary cup of hot tea.

Prices:

• Windsurfing: rental kit (board with sail) – 600 rubles per hour on weekdays/700 rubles per hour on weekends.

• Kitesurfing (lessons): introductory course – 1,500 rubles; basics course – 10,000 rubles.

Hours of operation: dependent upon weather conditions, typically from 12:00 pm or 1:00 pm to 9:00 pm.

Graf-in

Address: 4 Konnogvardeisky blv.

Telephone number: 60-101-60

The terrace of the Graf-in restaurant is one of the first that have appeared in the city this season. It is fully enclosed by glass walls, but during sunny and warm weather, the awnings fold back so as to create an open veranda. There are warm blankets on the couches, and fire lit lanterns on the tables. A creative team of connoisseurs, the Bartender Brother group headed by Alexander Kanom, composed the list of summer mixed drinks.

Hours of Operation: Monday – Thursday, 10:00 am to 2:00 am

Terrassa

Address: 3 Kazanskaya St.

The scenic restaurant “Terrassa” of the Ginza Project can be found on the rooftop of one of the tallest building at the center of the city. You can see the city’s main attractions, Nevsky Prospect and the Kazan Sobor, without moving away from the railing.

The restaurant’s menu includes dishes that will satisfy anyone’s tastes. Diverse cuisines of the world: American, French, Italian, Thai, Chinese, Japanese, as well as the most delicious French desserts, are represented at this restaurant.

Volga-Volga

Address: Petrovsky Embankment, across house number 8

Telephone number: +7 (812) 900-83-38

Volga-Volga is a unique and first class steamboat restaurant with karaoke and open deck-terrace “Ponton,” thanks to which you can forget about the city heat and bustle. Apart from this, according to the schedule, Volga-Volga sets off for an hour-long cruise on the Neva River. Volga-Volga’s itinerary includes some of the famous bridges of St. Petersburg: Dvortsovyi, Birzhevoi (Stock Exchange), Tuchkov, Blagovestentsky, Sampsonievsky, as well as the exceptionally beautiful embankments: Admiralteiskaya, Universitetskaya, and Dvortsovaya. The schedule of cruises: 3:00 pm to 4:00 pm.

Hours of Operation: from 12:00 pm to the last guest. Kitchen open till 1:00 am.

“Luzhaika”

Address: 16 Aptekarsky Prospect

Telephone: +7 (812) 916 91 64

Here in the cool shade of the verandah, while drinking an apricot- carrot “fresh” with celery, someone surely will remember Turgenev’s “Bezhin Meadow” or Prishvin’s “Pantry of the Sun.” You can spend time here in a romantic atmosphere with the whole family, in a dacha house or in a tent, among artificial ponds, lawns and little bridges; you can lie down in a snow-white hammock, and sit in the shadow of the verandah, enjoying dishes of European, Italian, Uzbek, and Japanese cuisine. The location of the restaurant is also convenient for summer walks; right next to it are the botanical gardens and the embankment of the Karpovka River. At the Luzhaika, you can catch a fish directly from the pond, and they will prepare it for you right then and there. And for the children, right in the fresh air, there is a playground. There is also a small local petting zoo with rabbits and goats for younger children, which has been built with the little ones especially in mind.

Hours of Operation: every day from 1:00 pm to 1:00 am

Teplo

Address: 54 Bolshaya Morskaya St.

Telephone number: +7 (812) 570-19-74

The restaurant Teplo has, for the fourth successive year, opened its summer terrace in the courtyard, composed of the Composers’ House: a row of wrought tables, fine flowers, and multi colored garlands. There are not too many canopies here, and that is why visitors to the restaurants sit in the open air at round glass tables. Teplo is famous for its baked goods as well as its hot chocolate, but towards the summer, several new items were introduced into the menu: sorrel soup, cold borscht, homemade fruit lemonades, and the Napoleon pastry with fresh berries.

Hours of Operation: Monday – Thursday 8:00 am to 12:00 am, Fridays 9:00 am to 1:00 am, Saturdays 11:00 am to 1:00 am, Sundays 1:00 pm to 11:00 pm.

Mansarda

Address: 3–5 Pochtamtskaya St.

Telephone: +7 (812) 946-43-03

Mansarda overlooks St. Petersburg from the last floor of the business center Quattro Corti, which is located in a building with a long history. 150 years ago, Count Shuvalov lived in the house on Pochtamtsky pereulk.

The panoramic view from Mansarda also includes the business center’s stained glass, authentic St. Petersburg rooftops, and, most importantly, the stunning Isaakievskiy sobor. Sophisticated dishes prepared by the master chef Massimiliano Atzori and an elegant atmosphere stand out among the restaurant’s many great attributes.

Hours of Operation: Monday – Sunday 12:00 pm to 1:00 am

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